How common are bunions? Some assume they’re something only older people have to deal with, but the truth is that around  23% of 18 to 65-year-olds  have them. They can go largely unnoticed at the start, with many only booking an appointment after a bunion’s been growing for months. Bunions or Hallux abducto valgus , refers to a gradual change in the position of the big toe where it starts to angle toward the other toes and creates a noticeable bump on the inside of the foot.